AES Europe 2026

Audio engineering standards often present as objective, yet
they frequently rely on a systemic data bias which Perez
characterises as the 'default male bias' [1]. This paper
examines the hegemony of the male ear, a system of norms
that privileges masculine modes of hearing by prioritizing
technical structure; text over affective experience;
timbre [2]. By transitioning from a visual centric auditory
gaze toward an embodied sonic gnosis, researchers can
recover haptic; physiological ways of knowing sound.
Drawing on the feminist listening praxis of the Female Ear
[3], this work explores the recording studio as an
analytical space where sonic microaggressions [4] enforce
rigid technical standards. The author argues for a new
audio praxis that centers ear pleasures [5], validating
subjective; affective sensory data as legitimate
engineering input. This approach seeks to dismantle the
regulatory fiction [6] of a universal hearing standard,
promoting a pluralistic understanding of musicking [7] that
is inclusive of non normative perspectives.